The Malaysian hotelier championing slow living in downtown Kuala Lumpur

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The Malaysian hotelier championing slow living in downtown Kuala Lumpur

Ng Ping Ho's boutique hotel, KLoe, opened just days before Malaysia went into lockdown. Now reopened to domestic travellers, the hotel's focus on slow living and community ties seems even more than pertinent than before.

28 Jun 2022 06:30AM (Updated: 05 Jul 2022 01:30AM)

For someone growing up in Kuala Lumpur (KL) in the 70s and 80s, Bukit Bintang was a very different identify from the shopping mecca it is today. A wet market once stood where Lot ten Shopping Centre now stands, while Bukit Bintang Girls School occupied the area that Pavilion now sprawls beyond.

The commune had somewhat of a hamlet vibe. Ng Ping Ho, whose family unit home was smack in the middle of Jalan Bukit Bintang, could but stroll over to his school, St John'southward Main (which withal exists in the same location today). The sometime screenwriter, managing director and producer is known to Malaysians equally creator of the award-wining sitcom Kopitiam, which aired from 1998 to 2003 on local Tv.

Merely by the late noughties, the Central St Martins Alumni felt burnt out from Boob tube production. By chance, his dad showed him a row of heritage shophouses that he owned in downtown KL. Ng hitting on the idea of converting the shophouses into a professionally-run backpackers hostel.

In 2009, Ng left his erstwhile life behind and launched BackHome – to immediate success. Located near the Petaling Street Market, it was a breath of fresh air from the seedy hostels bachelor in the vicinity, being comfy and chic yet clean and affordable.

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Spurred by his initial success, Ng followed upwardly with the opening of LOKL Coffee, a cafe on the ground floor of BackHome, together with his Television presenter wife, Cheryl Samad. Unlike the hostel, the buffet wasn't an instant hit.

"The first few years were tough for united states – people would walk in, find out there was no rice on the menu, and leave. But slowly, we built upwards a following, and at present, it'southward e'er full during lunch, and has become a popular brunch spot in the city," enthused Ng.

In 2010, the thought for Ng's side by side big project came nigh. He started to notice that guests at BackHome weren't necessarily staying in that location because of budget constraints, but because they wanted the social interaction that came from staying in a hostel.

The reception desk-bound at KLoe. (Photo: KLoe)

This gave birth to KLoe, an fourscore-room boutique hotel aimed at "creative nomads", who could meet and mingle with other agreeing individuals, and possibly explore the city together. Notwithstanding, the procedure of building the hotel from scratch took a good decade, and it finally opened in March 2020.

"My vision for the hotel was for it to exist the Kinfolk of hotels. A hotel that celebrates slow living, customs, gatherings and craft. It starts from our 'living room', where not only guests, merely besides the customs in the expanse around the hotel, gather for coffee, get some piece of work done, or chill out," explained Ng.

The hotel is organised around a cardinal courtyard and puddle. (Photograph: KLoe)

Working with Domain Architects, whom Ng previously collaborated with for BackHome, the decision was made not to maximise floor space but to prioritise natural lite and air flow. Equally such, the edifice is a U-shape, with open up corridors overlooking a courtyard and a pool.

To concenter these creative nomads, it seemed only right for KLoe to be a showcase of local talent, as near everything in the hotel – from the piece of furniture to the ceramics – were particularly deputed.

"There wasn't really a pick procedure for artists or designers. Nosotros would work with people we found exciting or inspiring. And we tended to give them a lot of leeway, similar when nosotros worked with Liza Ho from OUR ArtsProjects who sourced a lot of artworks for the guest rooms. The merely criteria throughout was to have art that was at-home, counterbalanced and inspiring," explained Ng.

Through its five Artist Lofts, KLoe aims to inspire guests beyond the disciplines of art, literature, music, horticulture, and nutrient.

"The idea for the lofts came from Lisette Scheers of Nala Design who worked on the branding for the hotel. She suggested that if nosotros're a creative hotel, that we actually inspire people to exist creative," Ng recalled. "You don't have to exist an artist, but you might be curious about painting. So the lofts allow people to surrender to their creative impulses in the privacy of their own room."

Ng and his squad worked with five influencers to curate the lofts. These included artist Joee Cheong; Nazir Fadzilah of independent bookstore and publisher Tintabudi; and glory chef Sarah Huang Benjamin. It is now the only hotel in Malaysia where guests can put on a vinyl tape, paint on canvas, or order up ingredients to cook their own meal.

For Ng, this hospitality road he embarked on has been immensely gratifying. "Whether information technology's a script, a TV prove, a hotel, or cafe, I similar creating spaces for people. When people enter a space, they go on a journey, and you have all these opportunities to touch on them, or inspire them."

Having the hotel located in Bukit Bintang represented coming full circle for Ng. But just as he was revelling in the afterglow of a successful opening in March, Malaysia'due south Movement Control Ordinance (MCO) was announced.

Similar the rest of the land, Ng did non anticipate it would continue well into June only wanted to keep the whole team together without layoffs – no easy task considering hotels were shut down during the MCO, with F&B outlets only being allowed to open in May.

"We take been using this time to improve operations and service standards, to train our team, and mainly to make sure we return much stronger than before," he explained.

Ng and his team have also formulated a road map forward which focuses on the domestic market, targeting urban, creative-minded travellers aged 25 to 50, looking for a unique experience.

I such instance is Isolation Staycations, where guests check into the lofts and are provided with everything they need to proceed themselves fully occupied – for days. A new kind of hotel experience for the new normal, Ng and his team are locked and loaded to face the challenges ahead, whatsoever fate brings.

The Malaysian hotelier championing slow living in downtown Kuala Lumpur

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